One hit wonders
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dzheremi
Coptic Orthodox non-Egyptian
- Aug 27, 2014
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One of my all-time favorites here...very emotional, even though I don't understand a word.
Kyu Sakamoto "Sukiyaki" (Ue O Muite Arukou)
From the uploader:
The title Sukiyaki, a Japanese hot pot dish, has nothing to do with the lyrics or the meaning of the song; the word served the purpose only because it was short, catchy, recognizably Japanese, and more familiar to most English speakers. A Newsweek columnist noted that the re-titling was like issuing "Moon River" in Japan under the title "Beef Stew."
"Ue o Muite Arukō" (上を向いて歩こう?, literally " shall walk looking up") is a Japanese-language song that was performed by Japanese crooner Kyu Sakamoto, and written by lyricist Rokusuke Ei and composer Hachidai Nakamura. It is best known under the alternative title "Sukiyaki" in English-speaking parts of the world. The song reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 charts in the United States in 1963, and was the only Japanese-language song to do so. In total it sold over 13 million copies internationally. The original Kyu Sakamoto recording also went to number eighteen on the R&B chart.[3] In addition, the single spent five weeks at number one on the Middle of the Road charts. The recording was originally released in Japan by Toshiba in 1961. It topped the Popular Music Selling Record chart in the Japanese magazine Music Life for three months, and was ranked as the number one song of 1961 in Japan.
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Since this was just before the Beatles hit it big in America and the wider world, I can't help but wonder how differently pop music could have evolved in the West if we had more international/non-English language acts hit instead of the Fab Four and the inevitable knock offs of them, and of the Stones, The Who, etc., since these were all so dominating, in their day. I like all these groups just fine, but to this day it's still incredibly rare to hear non-English songs on the US charts. We have this, "La Bamba" by Richie Valens, maybe "Oye Como Va" by Santana (I'm not sure offhand how that did on the charts), "99 Luftbaloons" by Nena...that song about Mozart by that Austrian guy Falco..."Macarena" by Los Del Rio...I'm sure I'm missing some, but there are not a lot of high cards in that deck to begin with, unfortunately.
Kyu Sakamoto "Sukiyaki" (Ue O Muite Arukou)
From the uploader:
The title Sukiyaki, a Japanese hot pot dish, has nothing to do with the lyrics or the meaning of the song; the word served the purpose only because it was short, catchy, recognizably Japanese, and more familiar to most English speakers. A Newsweek columnist noted that the re-titling was like issuing "Moon River" in Japan under the title "Beef Stew."
"Ue o Muite Arukō" (上を向いて歩こう?, literally " shall walk looking up") is a Japanese-language song that was performed by Japanese crooner Kyu Sakamoto, and written by lyricist Rokusuke Ei and composer Hachidai Nakamura. It is best known under the alternative title "Sukiyaki" in English-speaking parts of the world. The song reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 charts in the United States in 1963, and was the only Japanese-language song to do so. In total it sold over 13 million copies internationally. The original Kyu Sakamoto recording also went to number eighteen on the R&B chart.[3] In addition, the single spent five weeks at number one on the Middle of the Road charts. The recording was originally released in Japan by Toshiba in 1961. It topped the Popular Music Selling Record chart in the Japanese magazine Music Life for three months, and was ranked as the number one song of 1961 in Japan.
- - -
Since this was just before the Beatles hit it big in America and the wider world, I can't help but wonder how differently pop music could have evolved in the West if we had more international/non-English language acts hit instead of the Fab Four and the inevitable knock offs of them, and of the Stones, The Who, etc., since these were all so dominating, in their day. I like all these groups just fine, but to this day it's still incredibly rare to hear non-English songs on the US charts. We have this, "La Bamba" by Richie Valens, maybe "Oye Como Va" by Santana (I'm not sure offhand how that did on the charts), "99 Luftbaloons" by Nena...that song about Mozart by that Austrian guy Falco..."Macarena" by Los Del Rio...I'm sure I'm missing some, but there are not a lot of high cards in that deck to begin with, unfortunately.
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